Chris Nichols

­Chris Nichols is Sportsnet.ca's fantasy hockey writer.

Twitter: @Nichols_NHLPool/ Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com

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The Edmonton Journal writes that when Oilers hockey moments haven’t been as productive as planned — and that has happened a time or two this season — Kurtis Foster directs a quick glance to the inside of his right wrist.

The name Lila is engraved across his skin in black tattoo ink. Lila. 5-5-10.

“I had this tattoo done last year and I use it for perspective,” said the Edmonton Oilers defenceman. “If you make a bad pass or make a bad play, you have to realize better days will come.

“It’s definitely helped me along.”

Lila Kimberly Foster was born on May 5, 2010 and just five heartbreaking days later, Kurtis and his wife Stephanie lost their baby girl. It was part of the reason they were looking forward to their move to Edmonton after Foster had signed a free-agent contract with the Oilers, ending his tenure with the Tampa Bay Lightning. They not only embraced the change of scenery, they are moving on.

The couple are due on May 31.

“It will be a big, bright spot this summer,” continued Foster. “We’re really excited about this baby, almost antsy.

“The season hasn’t exactly gone the way I wanted, the team hasn’t done as well as we wanted, but this is something I’m definitely looking forward to. It gets me up every day, gets me ready to come to the rink.”

The Journal points out that while Foster and his wife were looking for a new start, the Oilers were looking for a defenceman with a big shot who could step into the void left by Sheldon Souray, who talked himself out of an NHL job with Edmonton. The Oilers signed Foster to a two-year, $3.6-million contract.

“It’s been tough. I put a lot of expectations on myself and coming into this season, I wanted to be a key part of the team,” admitted Foster, who is now two years removed from a horrific leg injury.

On March 19, 2008, when he was with the Minnesota Wild, Foster was driven into the end boards in a race for the puck. It took 10 hours of surgery to piece his left femur back together.

“I haven’t got the results I’ve wanted, statistic-wise, but I do feel like I’ve grown defensively,” he continued. “I feel I’m becoming a better all-around player.

“I have to take these last 10 games and show that I know what they want from me next year. I want to be a part of this. We have a lot of guys who will develop over the summer, so this is going to be the place to be. I want to make sure I come back in the best shape I can. I want to show the coaches and my teammates that I’m ready to go.

“Next year I’ll be 30 and that’s when they say guys move into their prime. Hopefully that’s what happens to me.”

Oilers head coach Tom Renney offered this to The Journal on Foster: “He’s been the victim of our circumstance, quite honestly. We’ve not been able to find him on the power play, we haven’t got enough pucks to him and it’s him sorting out where to go in those kinds of circumstances. This is a guy who has a bomb and we need to do a better job of finding him.

“He, too, has to take some ownership and get himself open, which he did (against Colorado). We need that from him.

“His defensive game is improving a lot. I’d say the last month he’s been as good defensively as anybody we’ve had. It took him a while to get to that point, but that’s a function of being engaged and being physical and using your size and strength to your advantage, and being decisive.”

“You have to earn your role,” said Foster, who will spend the off-season with his family in their hometown of Peterborough, Ont. “Once I start scoring goals, they’ll want to get the puck to me.

“I want to be strong on the power play and solid defensively. That’s the player I want to be. I’d like to be a guy who plays every game.”

The Calgary Herald writes that in the aftermath of on-ice ugliness, Alex Tanguay hears one excuse. And he’s tired of it.

Game’s too fast to avoid dangerous collisions?

The Calgary Flames winger refuses to buy that explanation. He scoffs at the predictable defence of line-crossers.

“We’ve all been playing hockey for 15, 20 years,” says Tanguay, just starting to roll on a quiet game-day morning in Los Angeles. “You have that split second and you know what you’re doing, you know your actions on the ice, you know where you’re pushing, what you’re doing with your body.

“The game is fast. It is fast on TV. But for the guys on the ice, you have that split second to slow down, to protect yourself . . . to do things differently. I don’t care what anyone says, we have that split second to stop, to not throw the elbow, to not do those things.”

And should a player opt for recklessness — sadly, a regular occurrence these days — it’s the National Hockey League’s duty to take action. To punish — and to punish severely.

No more pussyfooting around.

“I’m not talking two games, I’m talking 20, 25 games, half a year,” says Tanguay. “Then guys are going to start thinking about it. The only way we’re going to clear those things is if the league starts handing down big punishment. Because if they do, guys are really going to think about it — with their wallet, with their career. If you miss half a season because you’re suspended, it’s hard to get back after that.”

Tanguay gave The Herald his take on the Matt Cooke/ Ryan McDonagh situation.

“I was talking with a few of the guys (on the Flames), and it’s time for this to stop,” says Tanguay. “If he does that to me — or if anybody else does that to me — it might be the end of my career. I don’t (know) how the kid is doing. The kid’s 21 years old and if (Cooke) catches him in the right spot, the kid may never play again. Is that fair to him? Because of a move like that? I don’t think so.

“If it’s once, it’s an accident — you can say whatever you want. I don’t know how many times he’s been caught now.”

Drawing his outspoken and insightful spiel to a close Monday morning, Tanguay names names. Stars, potential victims, what-if scenarios.

“If it happens to (Sidney) Crosby again, if it happens to (Alex) Ovechkin, if it happens to one of those guys?” he says. “This is your product. These are the guys that people pay to watch. If it happens to (Jarome Iginla) in Calgary . . . we’re not kidding ourselves, there’s a lot of people that pay to watch him play.

“If it happens to (Iginla), it affects not only to our sport, our team, but it affects the product we put on the ice for our fans.”

The Vancouver Province postulates that the Canucks will have to find a way to fill a huge hole in their roster with Manny Malhotra not available through the rest of the season and the playoffs.

The NHL club made official on Monday what has been feared since Malhotra took a puck in the eye last week against Colorado: The injury to their third-line centre, who’s just as valuable for his leadership in the dressing as for his stellar play on the ice, is sufficiently serious that it will keep him out of hockey at least through the next three months.

Clearly, for Malhotra, the personal side of his recovery has now dwarfed anything related to hockey. The larger issue is not just if he will play hockey again, but if his eye will recover from the injury.

Canucks assistant GM Lorne Henning said that Malhotra’s horrific injury has taken its toll on the whole organization. But added that Malhotra’s leadership — he showed it right away after signing with Vancouver last summer by running the informal scrimmages at UBC — will still be in evidence going forward.

“Manny’s going to be around, so we’ll still have the leadership part of it,” said Henning. “It’s a huge blow, but to Manny’s credit he’s helped a lot of our guys in the leadership area and now they’re ready to take that to the next level.”

The Province believes it’s impossible, really, for the Canucks to replace Malhotra, who was signed last summer to upgrade the team’s third line and penalty killing.

Malhotra’s defensive play has been so good that he’s been in the conversation for Selke Trophy voting. He’s also second in the league in faceoff percentage (61.7) and, along with Kesler (56.8), gave Vancouver a lethal one-two punch in the circle. Malhotra, who leads the team in shorthanded ice time, is a key reason the Canucks have been able to improve their penalty killing from 18th overall last season to No. 2 right now.

They have no one with Malhotra’s package of skills, so the Canucks will have to fill his spot by committee.

Max Lapierre, acquired at the trade deadline to take over the fourth-line centre spot, has been promoted to the third line. He played his first game there in Friday’s 3-1 loss to Phoenix. Lapierre played 12:43, including a team-high among forwards of 4:33 on the PK, had four hits and was 64 per cent on faceoffs.

Another option is using Chris Higgins, also acquired at the trade deadline, in that spot. Higgins, a good penalty killer, logged 4:29 on the PK against Phoenix.

The Canucks don’t appear to see prospect Cody Hodgson fitting in the third line spot, at least not yet. On Monday, they called up Alexandre Bolduc from the Manitoba Moose to play on the fourth line if Tanner Glass still isn’t ready to get back into the lineup against the Red Wings on Wednesday.

In two straight games, The Boston Globe points out that goaltender Tuukka Rask has blown up at his teammates. Saturday against Toronto, Rask had words with Dennis Seidenberg after a Keith Aulie goal. Seidenberg had screened Rask on Aulie’s shot.

Two days earlier, Rask tossed his stick after David Legwand’s tying goal. Steve Kampfer had interfered with Rask, preventing him from sliding over to stop Legwand’s shot.

“I don’t support that,’’ Julien said. “And I don’t think anybody supports that, including him. Sometimes frustration sets in when you see players breaking their sticks after a goal-against. You see them put their heads up in the air after they miss an open net.

“There’s a frustration part. I’m certainly not going to stand here and start accusing him of that. But I think it’s something you don’t want to see from anybody. It has a big impact on your team. Having said that, I think Tuukka’s aware of that. If anything, he’s been playing some of his best hockey lately. So I don’t think there’s any need for that.

“Sometimes you’ve got to control your emotions. He’s frustrated with the first half of the year and he wants to help this hockey club. Sometimes his emotions run a little too high and he reacts that way.’’

Julien reiterated, however, that Rask’s actions didn’t affect the coach’s decision on Saturday. Rask, who had replaced Tim Thomas in the second period, was back on the bench to start the third. Julien explained that he wanted Thomas to get more action. Thomas hadn’t played in more than a week.

Fire & Ice says that of course, Martin Brodeur heard what people were saying about him during the first half of this season. It was hard not to.

Brodeur was old and he was washed up, they said. Brodeur, who will turn 39 on May 6, doesn’t dispute the first part of that assertion.

“I am getting older,” the Devils goaltender said. “There’s no secret there.”

As for the second part, Brodeur has done a pretty good job in the second half of the season demonstrating he still can play at a very high level.

In 22 appearances since Jan. 1, Brodeur is 16-4-1 with a 1.68 goals-against average, a .927 save percentage and two shutouts, including a 3-0 victory in Columbus on Sunday. He has allowed two goals or fewer in all, but one of his last 14 starts. In the process, he has lowered his GAA to 2.45 and raised his save percentage .901.

Those season numbers – along with his 21-22-2 record – are hardly Brodeur-like, but they’re far more respectable than where they stood after his brief and forgettable Jan. 1 outing in Carolina.

No one had to tell Brodeur he was playing poorly, though.

“I knew I wasn’t doing well,” he said. “I’m probably my worst critic. It’s not a fun what I went through, but you have to take it like a man.”

Fire & Ice says that the Devils and Brodeur are feeling a lot better about themselves now than they were in the first three months of the season. Brodeur certainly isn’t feeling his age as much as he might have been in the first half.

“I’ve been feeling great,” he said. “When you’re winning, it’s a lot easier to go out and work and do your thing. And when you lose, sometimes it plays in your head. I got caught up in it. There’s no doubt about it. Losing was not something I’m used to and I don’t want to get used to it either. I know I’m at the end of my career and, for me, I’m here for a reason. It’s because I want to win. I want to chance to win.”

To Brodeur’s credit, he still believed in the first half that this team wasn’t as bad as it looked and played. He immediately rejected any suggestion that the Devils trade him to help them rebuild for their future. He might not have thought that the Devils were going to get back in the playoff picture this season, but he repeatedly stated that he expected them to be back as a contender next season.

“Early on, I believed in this team and I said it all along,” he said. “Look at the turnaround. This is what we expected all year, what we’ve been doing right now. This is what everybody signed up for, what Kovy (Ilya Kovalchuk) signed up for. Guys wanted to stay here. They signed up for it. It’s to be that dominant. It didn’t happen.

“It was a hiccup. It was a big hiccup that is probably going to cost us a chance in the playoffs this year. But there’s a lot of good signs that will help us in the future.”

The Denver Post believes that Stefan Elliott's statistics this season are so good they are almost obscene. In 71 games for the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League, the defenseman had 31 goals, 81 points and a league-leading plus-62.

That kind of production helped get Elliott a three-year, entry-level pro contract with the Avalanche on Monday. Elliott, 20, will finish up his junior career in the playoffs for Saskatoon, with the possibility that he still could play for the Avs' American Hockey League affiliate in Lake Erie before the end of its season.

"It was quite a thrill, signing the contract," Elliott said from Saskatoon. "I think you never forget the moment you're drafted, then signing your first contract. Hopefully, I can play my first NHL game soon too."

A second-round pick by the Avs in 2009 (49th overall), Elliott became the WHL's all-time leading scorer among defensemen this season at Saskatoon with 241 points in 282 games, breaking Pat Price's 37-year-old record of 239.

"He had an amazing year this year in junior. I look forward to seeing him compete next year in training camp," Avalanche coach Joe Sacco said. "From what I remember of him, his skills were what really jumped out about him. His timing was very good, as far as being active and jumping in the play."

The Post points out that Elliott participated in two previous Avalanche training camps but was sent back to Saskatoon each time. At 6-foot, 190 pounds, Elliott may need to get a bit stronger for the NHL level, but there is no disputing his dominance at the junior level. Elliott's emergence — and the expected debut next season of another defensive prospect, Tyson Barrie — is one reason the Avs weren't so hesitant to trade Kevin Shattenkirk last month.

Elliott credits Saskatoon and former NHL coach Lorne Molleken for much of his development as a player.

"He's really helped me grow as a player and person," Elliott said. "I think our whole team just kind of came together this year, and it made things easier for me."

"Stefan is another one of our young, talented defensemen in the Avalanche system," Avs general manager Greg Sherman said in a statement. "We look forward to him beginning his pro career with our organization."

As training camp opened, The Columbus Dispatch notes that Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel pledged his defensemen would jump up into rushes and contribute more on offense.

Few thought it possible, especially with the group that was returning. But offensive fortunes like personnel have changed in Columbus since September.

In the past 10 weeks, the Jackets have been one of the NHL's most productive teams from the blue line. As of Sunday, they ranked tied for third in points (67) by defensemen since Jan. 11, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The New York Islanders were first with 71 points followed by the Montreal Canadiens with 69.

"People from the back end have taken more responsibility in getting up in the rush and being a part of our offense," Arniel said.

The group is learning when to get involved in the attack and how to get shots through from the points.

Arniel's system isn't producing Norris Trophy candidates - the Jackets still lack a top-50 scorer - but the collective numbers are proof it can work when properly executed.

"They are giving us the liberty to jump up now and we are not worried about getting an earful for taking a chance now and again," defenseman Marc Methot said. "It's about picking spots and we've got guys up here now who fire the puck on the power play."

The biggest addition has been Grant Clitsome, who has four goals and 14 assists in 28 games since being recalled from minor-league Springfield on Jan. 11.

Even a stay-at-home defenseman like Jan Hejda has recorded a career-high five goals.

"It took some time to figure out the system, but now I feel like I can be more offensive," Hejda said.

The Detroit Free Press says there was a stretch this month when Red Wings forward Mike Modano wondered if he could continue playing, if he could get to a point where he again felt he could make an impact.

That doubt has dissipated, pushed out as his legs have pushed forward. Modano scored the tying goal in Monday night's 5-4 shoot-out loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins at Joe Louis Arena, his first goal since he returned Feb. 26 from a devastating injury.

"It was finally nice to get something positive," Modano said. "We were out there for a couple of goals against, and you felt like it was one of those nights. It was a great pass by Fil and good screen by Tommy, and finally I could put it where I wanted it."

Modano had a season-high seven shots on net.

"I thought Mike was real good the other night in Nashville," coach Mike Babcock said. "The scoring is more important for him, so he feels good about himself. But I think he's been skating good and coming."

The Free Press indicates that Modano's improvement is more vital as the Wings are missing Pavel Datsyuk (lower body), Johan Franzen (groin) and Jiri Hudler (neck, shoulder), all of whom are day-to-day. The Wings don't have salary-cap room to call up anyone from the minors, but that could change in a few days as Chris Osgood said he plans to practice today and possibly dress Wednesday, which means Joey MacDonald could be sent down.

While the bench is short, Modano is relishing the opportunity to do more, a stark contrast to how he felt earlier this month.

"I don't feel that useless anymore as I did a couple of weeks ago," he said. "I'm starting to get from point A to point B a little quicker. I'm getting opportunities and seem to be around the puck a little more, so that's some positives."

Modano, 40, missed 41 games -- half the season -- recovering from a deep laceration to his right wrist Nov. 26. He returned three months later and notched two assists in his first three games, buoyed by adrenaline. Then came a stretch that reached a nadir March 12 at St. Louis, prompting a talk with Babcock.

"We had a good little chat and discussed my situation and what he felt we needed to keep pushing on and keep focusing on," Modano said. "It was not concern about being on the score sheet, just playing real good hockey and doing things well without the puck and being in good position and working down low. I just needed to feel I was getting a little stronger in that area. The St. Louis game was one of those nights you say, 'It's got to get better from here.' "

Though he spent most of the season playing for Carolina, The Miami Herald passes along that left winger Sergei Samsonov is feeling right at home in Florida.

Since joining the team on March 1, Samsonov has thrived on the Panthers’ first line.

He has tallied two points in each of his past three games, and his nine points in a Panthers uniform is good for more than a quarter of his season total in less than 15 percent of his games played.

“So far it’s been a lot of fun,’’ Samsonov said. “Any time you get traded, you need a little time to adjust. But it seems like the transition here has been pretty smooth.”

Florida acquired Samsonov in exchange for defenseman Bryan Allen on Feb. 28 in a move that was largely seen as another salary dump for a team sinking down the Eastern Conference standings.

Samsonov, an unrestricted free agent after this year, looked like he might not return next season. But with the former No. 8 overall draft pick gaining steam in his new uniform, the team might consider using some of its sizable salary-cap space to retain him.

“I like what I see so far,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “He looks like he’s playing for a contract, which is what you want to see this time of year out of these guys.”

The Herald points out that Samsonov is averaging close to 20 minutes of ice time since joining the Panthers on the day of the trade deadline, well above the 14 minutes he was getting with the Hurricanes. That extra six minutes is making a big difference, and he hopes to continue the streak when the Panthers start a five-game road trip Tuesday against the New York Rangers.

Center Stephen Weiss, who has been on the receiving end of three of Samsonov’s seven assists, has seen some of the benefits of skating alongside Samsonov.

Weiss is riding a four-game point streak and has eight points in his past eight games.

“We need to surround Stephen with some offensive players,’’ DeBoer said. “He hasn’t had a lot of support that way. I’m sure he’s happy to have a gifted guy on his wing.’’

The other member of the first line, Niclas Bergfors, is finding plenty of opportunities to be noticed as well.

Bergfors, 24, who came to Florida from Atlanta at the trade deadline in exchange for Radek Dvorak, has recorded a point in six of his past eight games and has gotten at least 16 minutes of playing time in each.

“I’m really glad I’m getting to play with Weiss and Sammy, two great players,’’ Bergfors said. “But I’ve got to do my part. I’ve got to work hard and make sure I benefit from those two players.’’

The Nashville Tennessean believes that stylistically, Blake Geoffrion differs from his famous grandfather, Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion.

The Hockey Hall of Fame member was known for blasting his famous invention — the slap shot — en route to 393 NHL goals.

Blake doesn't have that kind of howitzer, but he has figured out how to get similar results. The Predators forward finds the small openings in front of the net to score in tight quarters close to the goal. That was how he scored his first career NHL hat trick against Buffalo on Sunday night, and it is how he has managed all six goals in his 11 NHL games so far.

Sounds familiar to Mike Eaves, who coached Geoffrion at Wisconsin between 2006-10.

"He was kind of like a post player in basketball on the power play when he would get the puck from the hash-marks in from around the net," Eaves said. "He is a bigger body. He has good eye-hand coordination, and tips and rebounds on our power play was how he made his living there."

As for Geoffrion's goals in the win against Buffalo, none were exactly pretty. His first score he banked off Sabres forward Paul Gaustad in front of the net. His second he stuffed past Ryan Miller from the side of the net. And the third was on a redirection from Cody Franson's snap-shot.

The Predators have seen Geoffrion develop such methods since they drafted him in 2006.

The Tennessean notes that from his junior to and senior year — when he won the Hobey Baker Award as the top player in college hockey — Geoffrion increased his goal total from 15 to 28. A lot of the surge had to do with his ability to get the so-called "garbage" goal.

"I went to see him play in Wisconsin. Every one of his chances was right in that area, either from a tip on the power play or scrambling for rebounds," Predators assistant general manager Paul Fenton said. "He has a good release, he has a good shot, but his desire around the net is what makes him that much more successful."

With Geoffrion, it's more than finding an open net off a rebound when a goaltender is out of position. It's also about seeing the small openings when he gets the puck in front, and burying the chance.

"You've done it at one level and it's part of your makeup," Eaves said. "So many times when a guy has success at one level, the question is does he have that next gear in his gearbox to do it at the following level, and maybe he's showing some of that right now."

This isn't the only way Geoffrion can score. He has been known to fire a slap shot at times.

"With today's game and style, you take what they're giving you," said Danny Geoffrion, Blake's father and a former NHL player. "He has been fortunate to be at the right place at the right time with his teammates making nice passes to him."

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Peter Laviolette hasn't named his primary playoff goalie, but if you read between the lines, the Flyers coach is giving the job to 22-year-old rookie Sergei Bobrovsky.

Acknowledging Bobrovsky has no playoff experience, Laviolette said the Russian goalie's play in big regular-season games has been his training ground.

"They're not the playoffs, but that's where we're at right now," Laviolette said after Monday's practice in Voorhees. "There have been lots of young goalies that have come in and performed well in the playoffs. We had one in Carolina in 2006, so it's not something that can't be done."

Rookie goalie Cam Ward helped lead the Laviolette-coached Hurricanes to the 2006 Stanley Cup.

"We can't manufacturer playoff experience for him," Laviolette said about Bobrovsky. "He's going to have to earn it on his own and get it on his own, and this will be his first crack at it."

This is the season that might never have been for Coyotes forward Eric Belanger, according to The Arizona Republic.

After becoming a trade-deadline pickup for the Washington Capitals last season, Belanger anticipated staying in D.C. A deal was reportedly worked out where the Capitals would open up some cap space over the summer (likely via trade) and re-sign Belanger; it was publicized that the organization helped him find a house and a school for his kids.

But the arrangement fizzled, and Belanger was left to find a new team.

"I was kind of mad about everything, the situation, because my family was involved, and we were ready to move to Washington," Belanger said.

He had suitors, even ones with big enough pockets to offer more money than the $750,000 one-year contract Belanger ended up talking with the Coyotes in September.

"We had a lot of talks with different teams and for me at that point, it was more 'fit' than going after a couple more hundred thousand in the bank and feeling wanted somewhere and fitting somewhere," Belanger said.

The Republic believes that decision continues to benefit the Coyotes. With the absence of Martin Hanzal, who could miss his eighth consecutive game with a lower-body injury Tuesday night against the St. Louis Blues, Belanger has taken on more responsibility and played like a No. 1 center. He has four goals and nine points in his past seven games and with 13 goals already, Belanger could pass the 17-goal plateau for the first time in his 10-season career.

"Belly has been phenomenal for us," linemate Shane Doan said. "He's been great in playing against other team's top lines, and he's contributed great offense."

A nomad in the NHL, Belanger has been on six teams in the past six seasons. He slid in nicely into coach Dave Tippett's system because the two worked together during Belanger's tenure with the Los Angeles Kings when Tippett was an assistant coach there. But what makes Belanger click in the Phoenix lineup is his experience. There's almost nothing he hasn't encountered, and that's crucial in keeping the pulse of a team humming at a regular beat.

He's taken lengthy trips through the postseason, endured an 11-game losing streak to close out a season, and returned to one playoff game last spring after having eight teeth knocked out.

"Nobody's bigger than the team," said Belanger, who hopes he's found a permanent home in the Valley and a job with the Coyotes past this season. "For myself, I'm just one piece of the puzzle and I'm glad I can help the team fight for a playoff spot."

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch says that when the Blues' regular season began last October, defensemen Carlo Colaiacovo and Alex Pietrangelo were elated to be playing on the blue line together.

Seven years apart in age, Colaiacovo, 28, and Pietrangelo, 21, have grown close over the past couple of years, they think, because of their Italian roots and because they grew up 30 minutes apart near Toronto. Their common background may have initiated the dialogue, but it was Colaiacovo's big-brother sensibility in helping Pietrangelo deal with the mental hurdles of cracking the NHL that cemented the bond.

Today, Colaiacovo and Pietrangelo live down the hallway from each other in a St. Louis condo complex, and after Colaiacovo lost his road roommate Brad Boyes in a trade, the two are bunking together at team hotels. And now after being separated much of the season on the ice, as the Blues altered their defensive pairs, trades and injuries have led to the defensemen being reunited again.

"Sometimes we're inseparable," Colaiacovo said. "It's kind of hard to believe that I'm seven years older than him. But he's a fun kid to be around. It's a friendship that started and has stayed strong.

"Now we're playing together ... it's something I've been waiting for for a long time. When the year started, we had really good chemistry together. Through the year, we've mixed and matched (pairings), but hopefully we can finish the year together. I'm enjoying every minute of it."

The Post-Dispatch notes that a former first-round pick in Toronto, Colaiacovo became someone Pietrangelo, the No. 4 overall pick in 2008, could lean on as he attempted to make the Blues' roster as an 18- and 19-year old.

"When I first came here, Carlo was a guy that I was able to look up to more as a friend than anything," Pietrangelo said. "He and I had some things in common, and I knew that no matter what he'd be there. It wasn't only him; other guys (helped), too. But being an older guy, he'd been through it and he gave good advice."

Colaiacovo added that being reunited with Pietrangelo has benefited him, too. In the five games they've played together, Colaiacovo is a plus-3.

"I thrive on moments like this," he said. "I want to be more than the player that I am."

One thing Colaiacovo is not, however, is a Blues captain. Pietrangelo was given that honor recently and he doesn't let his close friend forget about it.

"Now, he's wearing the 'A' and he's telling me what to do," Colaiacovo said. "That's how far we've come."

"I always give him little jokes in the room," Pietrangelo said. "He always says, 'Respect your elders.'"